1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat exchanger cooling fin, in particular a heat exchanger cooling fin having louvres.
2. Description of the Related Art
A heat exchanger is a device for transferring heat from one fluid to another without the two fluids mixing. Heat exchangers are used in various industries, for example automotive and refrigeration industries, and thus different designs are known.
A type of heat exchanger uses a heat transfer element, for example tubing, within which a first fluid flows, placed within a free or forced flow of air. Heat transfer in the direction from the fluid within the heat transfer element to the air surrounding the tubing, may be enhanced by the provision of metal cooling fin plates secured in contact with the heat transfer element. However, as air flows over the fin plates, an air insulative boundary layer forms with increasing thickness along the surface of the fin plate. This effect potentially degrades the heat transfer efficiency of the heat exchanger, and thus various cooling fin designs utilise louvres, raised from the plane of the fin, which function to disrupt the formation of the boundary layer and to create turbulence, thus improving the practical efficiency of the fin plates and, in turn, the heat exchanger.